On the Republican side of the debate, presidential hopeful Ted Cruz and Rick Santorum have emerged as supporters of Trump. Contrastingly, Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House and a major voice of the Republican Party says that Trump does not "stand for the party", a comment that shows the emerging alienation and division within the Republican party. The Republican part has become a mix of the extreme right conservatives and more moderate centrists. Trump has tried to remedy his comments by repeating that FDR, a well respected president, set up Japanese internment camps and sent back Asian immigrants. Targeting the fears of the American people and the recent terrorist attacks in Paris and California, Trump has horrifically earned support from thousands of citizens and prominent reporter Laura Ingraham.
However, despite the supposed support for Trump, there are also facts that point to his lack of appeal to the general population. The White House press secretary has said that Trump is unfit for the White House and incapable of representing the American people on a national scale. Presidential candidate Hilary Clinton has echoed concerns saying that "Hate is not an American value". There is a clear population that believes what Trump says and falls into the category of wanting to exclude Muslim immigrants.
An interesting note is the legality of Trump's policies. Gerald L. Neumann, a Harvard Law professor, has noted that the president is granted the right to block the entry of any "class of aliens believed detrimental to the US". Although no one has ever used this right, it raises the question of "What if he did use this power?".
Is the exclusion of Muslim immigrants from the US necessary to protect us from terrorism?
With his increasing support, does Trump speak for the American people?
What does this say about the divisions within the Republican party?
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/us/politics/donald-trumps-plan-to-bar-foreign-muslims-might-survive-a-lawsuit.html?ref=politics
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/us/politics/donald-trump-muslims.html?ref=politics
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Though many support Trump on the grounds that he speaks with no filter and “says what everyone’s thinking”, Trump doesn’t realize there’s a reason no one has ever acted on their thoughts. Maybe it’s because they realize the immorality of their opinion, unlike Trump. He seems only to care about garnering a support base and will say whatever will bring in more supporters. Especially in the free voting system we have in American democracy today, being extreme and using scare tactics is a way to attract base voters. In my opinion, I do not think the exclusion of Muslim immigrants is necessary to protect us from terrorism. The majority of Muslims trying to enter the US today are those that are in need of help such as Syrian refugees. I don’t think it is reasonable to block access to the US from those that need it and have nothing to do with terrorism. In addition, it goes against the very values that built this country: acceptance of all races and religions. In fact, the United States has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a treaty that bars laws discriminating against people because of their religion. It protects “all persons,” not just citizens of a state. Also, barring foreigners from visiting or barring the return of residents that have a green card calls for a different legal test. Laws have been made against barring foreigners for a reason, and I hope that Trump will be stopped if he is in a position to put his idea into place. Though the courts have adopted an extremely deferential approach to reviewing foreign policy by Congress and the executive branch, Mr. Trump’s proposal to block the entrance of people based on their religion is so extreme that it is possible a Supreme Court majority might be willing to go against it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/us/politics/donald-trumps-plan-to-bar-foreign-muslims-might-survive-a-lawsuit.html?ref=politics
America was founded off of one basic principle, and that is that all men are created equal. If the U.S. were to exclude Muslim immigrants from our country it would not only contradict that moral standard that American’s greatly cherish, but also raise our stakes of terrorism even higher. If the United States were to give into the anti-muslim bigotry that lingers throughout our country, we would also be giving into terrorist threats. If groups like ISIS see that we fear their people, or people who follow a sect of their beliefs, they will then feel powerful. It would be foolish to give them that power, and not only that, but certainly dangerous as well. I believe that the exclusion of Muslims from the United States as a reaction to terrorism does exactly the opposite that Trump believes. Donald Trump stated that by banning Muslims from the the U.S. it would indeed raise our “protection” however this is not the case at all. ISIS wants to see us give into the fear that they so desperately wish to instill in our country, and they also hope to see us suffer losses to them. Losses such as our American values, and the moral beliefs our country is rooted in. If we were to take action and exclude Muslims from our country it would not only be a hypocritical move in regards to our country’s morals, but also fuel to power ISIS and their confidence in that the United States is willing to fall at the power of the fear they instill into our country. Furthermore, Trump does not speak for the American people, but rather speaks an extremist view. It is certainly evident that American’s face a confliction with the values of Islam and are fearful of its people. NPR published an article along with a graph which was titled “Is Islam ‘At Odds’ With U.S. Values?” and by looking at the graph it is clear that this is so. The article stated that “A large share of Americans believe that Islamic views are not compatible with US values”. The graph showed that 43% of Democrats feel that Islam is at odds with US values. It also showed that 56% of ALL Americans feel this way too and 76% of the GOP feel Islam values conflict American morals as well. As a result, this graph represents that a fear of the Muslim culture is widespread throughout both political parties and most Americans in the United States. To answer Gwen’s question in regards to how this divides the Republican party is also depicted in this graph. With 76% of Republicans fearing Islam, there are still 24 % who do not. Therefore there is a portion of Republicans who do not feel the way Trump feels. However, Donald Trump’s statement in that America should close its borders to Muslims was extreme and not a reflection of our American views. Yes our citizens may fear them, but we do not ALL believe that the exclusion of their culture from our country is necessary or moral.
http://www.npr.org/2015/12/10/459207587/surprised-about-donald-trumps-popularity-you-shouldnt-be
I feel that Trump's comments are way too extreme but go along perfectly with the image that Trump has established for himself since the start of his campaign. His entire campaign has been based upon these inane claims and ridiculous policy proposals. At the start he was out to 'build a wall' and keep out Mexicans and now here he is targeting Muslims. Trump thrives off of the attention he receives from making outlandish remarks - remarks he feels will "help make American great again". It is terrifying that he has received so much support given the innumerable offensive and outrageous remarks he has made. But I guess as, Gursimar also stated, these claims are part of his appeal. From the start many people have credited Trump with being able to articulate the frustration and feelings that Americans have about both the nation as a whole and the functioning in Washington. While I do agree that Trump has highlighted the heightened sense of fear many Americans have in regards to terrorism given recent events, I don't feel that his 'plan' in anyway represents all of America. Most Americans have responded to his comments negatively and have gone so far as to compare him to Hitler (specifically in regards to his previous comments about requiring Muslims to carry ID). Even Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, has desperately tried to distance the Republican Party from Trump and this new proposal. As Gwen mentioned this distancing only draws more attention to the growing fragmentation within the GOP - a divide that will probably only continue to get worse as this campaign wears on, and the centrists are pitted against conservatives.
Overall Trump's plan to ban all Muslims from entering the country is simply ridiculous. This plan goes directly against numerous American values and beliefs, namely the principle of equality and tolerance. By following through with such a plan we would be targeting an entire religion and group of people, with little proof at all that it would actually make a difference in preventing terrorist attacks within our borders. As Caroline mentioned it would only serve to benefit ISIS and other terrorist organizations, whose goal is to inflict terror - a goal that would be achieved by such an action as blocking Muslims' entrance to the U.S. Trump has gone too far with this proposal and it is imperative that the people supporting him come to realize it too.
I think that Donald Trump’s latest outburst is horrifying. It has released a condemnation from Democrats, Republicans, and the media; yet his poll numbers keep rising. Trumps ban on Muslims entering the United States has been likened to the Holocaust and the Japanese internment. Richard Engel, the NBC News chief foreign correspondent, said “This is not small ball, actually. This matters...It is a black spot on our collective foreign policy and our conscious. And it also just feeds into the ISIS narrative.” I completely agree Engel. If we continue to isolate and ostracize Muslims than more people will turn towards ISIS; Donald Trump is playing right into their hands. I believe that what he is doing and what he is saying is far outside American traditions and values. As Caroline said above, we are country founded on the premise “every man created equal” and a country founded by immigrants. Despite the surprising amount of support that he is getting, I think the media backlash and the split in the Republican party is evidence that he in fact does not speak for the American people. The majority of the people in the United States are moderate and thus I don’t think, and would like to hope, that his fame is just a fraud. I think that the Republican party is also aware of his far right ideals and that is why speaker Paul Ryan is trying to distance the party from Trump. I also disagree with Trump’s idea that the exclusion of Muslim immigrants from the US is necessary to protect us from terrorism. This New York Times article (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/11/25/us/us-muslim-extremists-terrorist-attacks.html) explores the history of the recent jihad attackers and shows that half of them were actually born in the United States.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/10/politics/donald-trump-media-backlash/index.html
As Caroline mentioned, not allowing Muslims into the country completely violates America's dedication to equality and freedom. Banning Muslims is not necessary for the protection of the country considering there are very few Muslim extremists who cause harm. Most are simply trying to live peacefully, but we won't let them because we feel the need to discriminate based on their religion. As Gwen states in the original post, Trump justifies his actions by reminding everyone that FDR did something similar after Pearl Harbor with the Japanese internment camps and stopping their immigration into the country. What Trump fails to realize is that Japanese internment was wrong. The government has even apologized for the SCOTUS ruling in Korematsu v. US because many leaders do not believe it was right to support the government's actions, as the Supreme Court did at the time. Overall, keeping Muslims out would jeopardize liberty and equality in America, which is the basis of our country's principles.
Trump's increasing support, in my opinion, is mainly due to his very out-there comments. The saying that "any media is good media" seems to have proven true for him because every time he says something outrageous, he goes up in the polls. With that being said, I think he has put himself so far right on the spectrum, that his following is only a small group of more extreme people. He has drifted so far from the center that he will have a hard time keeping his lead. His comments have also angered the other Republican candidates lately, which brings up the question of Trump running as an independent. This is causing greater division within the party, which could prove to be detrimental to the GOP's success in the election.
Source:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/personality/landmark_korematsu.html
Not very surprisingly, I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here and more or less denounce Trump. The White House, in itself, has come forth and stated that Trump should be disqualified from the Presidential race in eve of his comments about Muslims. Vice President Joe Biden probably stated it in the simplest fashion, "I don’t know what his motive is, but I know what he’s preaching is a very, very dangerous brew for America". The nation's security is by no means at the mercy of the Muslims who, everyday, come to the United States for business or leisure. According to estimates made by CNN through the analysis of the US-Census, the portion of the U.S. population that Muslims constitute is less than one percent, that's at most about 32 million American Muslims. Not only would Trump's proposal alienate all ~32 million Americans Muslims, that means that approximately 1/4.5 of the world's population would be banned from entering the United States. That's 1.6 billion people. This clearly demarcates Trump's proposal as unrealistic and more blasphemous than anything. Donald Trump is running for the President of America's media, not for the President of the United States; there is basically no point in getting frustrated in someone so plagued by such an illogically tainted thought process.
In terms of the polls, I think it is quire clear, that despite the big numbers, Trump does not represent the American people. Based on out studies in class, we know that polls are a rather crude way of demonstrating support for a candidate and only the most hardcore of followers attend the hail of pollsters. If Donald Trump actually represented the majority of the American population, we wouldn't even have to have a debate over who would become president, because the world would presumably be in flames anyway.
Ironically, I believe that Trump is exactly what the Republican party needed. Over the past few years, and even decades, the Republican party has become more and more extreme in its views, alienating many of its moderate supporters. For Trump to come out so strong has almost forced the Republican party to stiffen up and realize that they have to represent something bigger than just their values. It's essentially a wake up call for many conservatives. A wake up call which many see was necessary to rejuvenate A once dominate party.
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/12/8/trump-ban-on-muslims-entering-US-disqualifies-him-from-presidency.html
Trump's most recent comments regarding Muslims in America are absolutely horrifying and offensive. The idea that this is a plausible method to protect America from terrorism is preposterous. In President Obama's address to the nation, he best put it that "It is our responsibility to reject religious tests on who we admit into this country. It’s our responsibility to reject proposals that Muslim Americans should somehow be treated differently. Because when we travel down that road, we lose. That kind of divisiveness, that betrayal of our values plays into the hands of groups like ISIL." In this quote, Obama shows that Trump's immaturity and inexperience is manifested in his actions. Someone who speaks in such a manner is not fit to lead our nation in any way, shape, or form. Obama also mentioned, "If we’re to succeed in defeating terrorism we must enlist Muslim communities as some of our strongest allies, rather than push them away through suspicion and hate." Trump is doing exactly what Obama warns America not to do. I also don't believe that Trump speaks on behalf of the nation at all. 57% of Americans oppose Trump's proposal to ban Muslims from entering America, and just 25% are in favor (while this number is still disturbingly too large).
Source:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/12/06/address-nation-president
http://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/nbc-wsj-poll-57-oppose-trumps-muslim-proposal-n477941
Throughout his entire campaign, Donald Trump has caused quite the controversy with his beliefs. But, no headline has caused more controversy than his recent comments on muslims in the aftermath of the Paris and San Bernardino Terror attacks. Like everyone else has said, Trump’s comments are offensive and absurd. We do not need to keep out muslims to prevent terrorists, we just need to greatly improve our vetting system and improve gun control. The acts of ISIS and other islamic terrorist groups in no way represent well over 99% of Muslims. We must have improved background checks and an improved system to prevent acts of terrorism from people of all religions, race, etc. not just Muslims. In regards to Trump’s plan to alienate all Muslims currently in the United States is even more insane, and will just create hate and prejudice without actually decreasing acts of terrorism within the U.S. While the argument over immigration will always be controversial, the argument over alienating our fellow Americans should not.
I do not think that Trump speaks for the majority of the American people with his beliefs, despite his rising poll numbers. Politicians of both parties and many Americans are outraged over Trump’s recent comments and I think his poll numbers will quickly drop. King Pash said it best, Trump is running for President of the media not President of the United States. I think the recent division of opinions in the GOP shows that the Republican party is not really sure what direction they are headed, and this has been the case for several years. It is important to remember that the moderate and centrist candidates are usually the most successful. If Trump happens to win the Republican nomination, I do not see him having a chance at victory in the general election.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-35037701
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